Permit Renewal For Driver In Fatal Bus Accident Lost

Firm, State Blame Each Other For Error

May 26, 2000|By Amanda Vogt, Tribune Staff Writer.

The secretary of state's office never received paperwork to renew an expired school bus driver's permit for a Waukegan woman who accidentally backed a bus over a Grayslake toddler, killing her, a spokeswoman said Thursday.

But an official with the bus company involved in the accident insisted the paperwork had been sent and subsequently lost by the secretary of state's office.

Robin A. Diaz, 36, was the driver of the mini school bus that struck and killed 22-month-old Maggie Gunderson early Monday after the toddler wandered behind the bus.

Secretary of State officials said Thursday that in November of last year it notified Diaz's employer, Elkhorn, Wis.-based Jones School Bus Service, that Diaz's permit had expired three months earlier, according to spokeswoman Elizabeth Kaufman.

The state requires school bus drivers to have the permit, which must be renewed annually, Kaufman said. Applicants must pass a physical examination that includes drug and tuberculosis testing and a "refresher" driver's education course, she added.

Eric Jones, vice president of Jones School Bus Service, said Diaz's permit had been renewed but that the paperwork became lost at the secretary of state's office.

"Her permit is valid," Jones said. "I hope now this can be put to rest and (Diaz) can get on with her life. (The child's death) is the worst thing that can happen to any school-bus driver."

Kaufman said state officials are looking into Jones' claim, but that an exhaustive search had failed to turn up the paperwork.

Kaufman said that under the Illinois State Vehicle Code, Diaz's employer is responsible for making sure its employees are in compliance with the law.

"We've never been faced with a situation like this, so we have yet to determine how we will respond," Kaufman said.

Lake County law enforcement officials will not bring criminal charges against Diaz, according to Matthew Chancey, chief of felony review for the Lake County state's attorney's office.